Martin Prado won’t be healthy enough for Opening Day

Marlins third baseman Martin Prado, who suffered an injury during the World Baseball Classic earlier in the week, has a Grade 1 hamstring strain and isn’t expected to be healthy by Opening Day, according to MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro.

It’s about the time in spring training when some injuries force teams to explore other player possibilities, and the Classic has seemingly forced teams do so more often than in the past. Though it doesn’t seem like Prado’s injury is too serious, he was slotted to open the season at third base and in the middle of the Marlins lineup.

There aren’t many internal candidates for the Marlins to explore, with Derek Dietrich and Miguel Rojas emerging as the favorites to replace Prado. Both are versatile bench pieces, though Dietrich has proven to have more offensive success than Rojas.

Prado, 33, hit .305/.359/.417 with eight home runs and 75 RBIs with the Marlins last season.